The baby is due in February, but with his busy schedule, Downey, 46, admits he'll be a working father for the youngster's early years.

He tells Britain's Live magazine, "It's funny. I used to say that I'd welcome a bullet to the forehead if I ever ended up as a 40-something, remarried, marketable, big-action movie dad living in a cozy cul-de-sac in suburban L.A. Now I am that guy."

"It just goes to show that I usually don't know what's good for me in life. But I'm getting better at knowing that stuff. I don't need to rub against the grain nearly as much as I used to. I'm 46 now, so the countdown to my half-century has begun. I'd have to be completely deranged not to stress about that."